Sectional mold-operating device



Sept. 9', 11924.

.J. E. MCBRIDE'.

VSZICTICDNAL. MOLD OPERATING DEVICE Filed Sept. 4, 1917 latented Sept, 9, 1924.

EBEE E. ECBREDE, Gif BETROT, HECEIGN, ASSEGNGB T0 PALMER-BEE COMPANY, OF

ETRQIT, MICHIGAN, A CORPORATEON F MICHIGAN.

SECTIONAL EKOLD-OPERTXNG DEVICE.

Application filed September 4, 19T?. Serial No. l.

To ali wilma t may concern."

Be it known that I, JESSE E. MCBRIDE., a citizen of the United States of America, residing at Detroit, in the county of Wayne S and State of Michigan, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Sectional Mold-Operating Devices, of which the following is a specification, reference heing had therein to theaccompanying drawings.

This invention relates to mold-operating devices, especially such as are adapted for the curing rooms of rubhei` plants, and re fers more particularly to the provision of an apparatus for advancing the molds and automaticallylifting and holdingy one section of the 'mold spaced from the other during at least a portion of the travel.

ln the handling of molds such as are employed in connection with the vulcanizing of automobile tires, it is necessary to separete the mold sections for the purpose of removing the cured tires, cleaning the molds und replacing the removed section hack upon the other section. Because ot' the factthat the molds are not interchangeable it is essentiel that the cover-section of each of the molds he returned hack upon the particular lower mold section from which it was removed. Therefore the present invention contemplates an apparatus whereby the mold sections are not only separated but are caused to so travel that the cover or upper section removed from any mold will be automatically returned back upon that particular mold from which it was removed; to provide a construction in which endless conveyers are employed, one ot which is offset with relation to the other through a part of its travel so as to advance the molds in separated relation, the conveyors being driven at such speed that while one of them travels through a longer orbit than the other, the mold section carried by it will reach the return point at the saine time as the section carried hy the other conveyor; to so construct and arrange the parte that one of the securing devices for connecting the mold section to he lifted to the upper 'conveyor will always be in registration or substantially in. registration with the mold section to he lifted -irrespective of the spacing of the molds on the lower conveyor.

The invention also resides insuch other features of construction. and arrangements and combinations of parts as will more fully hereinafter appear.

ln the drawings: l

Figure l is a diagrammatic top plan View of a conveyor system to which my invention is applied;

Figure 2 is a side elevational `view of the conveyor which separates the mold sections;

Figure 3 is an enlarged Vertical section on the line 3-3 of Figure 2.

Figure 4 is an enlarged vertical section through the lower conveyor.

Describing in detail the particular construction shown in the drawings and referring lirst to the general system illustrated in Figure l, the vulcanizing heaters are arranged in parallel rows and 2, between which thereextends a main feed conveyor 3 on which the molds 4 are carried. The supply of molds to this main feed conveyor 3 isfurnished by the transverse end conveyer 5 which in turn receives the filled molds from the work conveyor 5. The molds are'transferred to the various heaters by suitable de'lecting devices 7 and 8 and after being subjected to the heat. treatment for the desired length of time, they are taken from the heaters and placed upon return conveyors 9 and 10 which carry them in the direction of the arrows to the end convcyer ll. From the latter 'they are automatically returned onto the work conveyor 6, or rather onto the lower conveyor l2 of the work conveyor which is formed of two complete endless conveyers l2 and 13. The latter is spaced above the yconveyor l2 and is provided with a plurality of hooks 14 which can he engaged with and carry the upper mold section 15 in spaced relation to the lower mold section i6 in the following manner At the point marked I8 the upper convey'er 13 is spaced from the lower conveyor l2 a' suiiieient distance to permit one of the hooks 14 to be engaged with a link on the lifting chain 17 while the, mold cover-section l5 is still in place 1n the lower mold section 16. lt will be noticed that there are a large number of the books 14, that is, the series of hooks 14 are closely spaced so that there will always be one of the hooks which is substantially straight over the cover-section to be lifted. This provision of a large number of hookseor other securing devices on the upper coigeyel; is an 

